NEWS | Lehigh to host 2025 Paul Short Run
NEWS | USTFCCCA week 3 poll presser
 
Wingate, N.C.----The Wingate University men's and women's cross country teams will compete in the 51st annual Paul Short Run Friday in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Lehigh University hosts eight college races Friday. Over two days, the LU Mountain Hawks will host 7,000 athletes representing more than 600 schools for high school and college races.
 
Lehigh is WU director of cross country and track and field Matt van Lierop's alma mater. On Friday, head coach Pol Domenech will have 47 Navy Blue and Vegas Gold-clad Bulldogs who are slated to compete in four different races. The No. 1 Wingate men have 27 student-athletes on the pre-meet rosters, while the No. 5 Bulldog women have 20.
 
51st annual Paul Short Run schedule
 
9:30 a.m. – Men's Open 8K
10:15 a.m. – Women's Open 6K
11 a.m. – Men's Gold 8K (top 10 WU runners)
11:45 a.m. – Women's Gold 6K (top 10 WU runners)
 
Looking back at the 50th annual Paul Short Run, October 5, 2024
Goodman Campus Cross Country Course, Lehigh University
 
- The No. 1 Wingate men won the Gold 8K race for the first time
- The Bulldogs had 30 points in a 44-team field
- Harvard finished second with 95 points, followed by Utah State (109)
- NCAA champ Hamza Chahid finished second in the Gold race (23:19.1)
- The Bulldog men won the Open Division as well
- The No. 6 Wingate women finished 18th in the 42-team Gold 6K race
- Tara Migliaccio ('24) led the 'Dogs with her 6K time of 21:02.9
- The Bulldog women finished fifth out of 44 teams in the Open Division
- Current junior Tea Geary led WU in the Open Division race (22:05.5)
 
What They Are Saying
Wingate junior student-athlete Ona Alonso
 
"On Friday, we are competing in Lehigh University's Paul Short Run, one of the big and important dates for the WU Cross Country team. For most of the team, or at least for all of us who have experienced Lehigh previously, the Paul Short Run is one of the highlights of the season."
 
"In Lehigh's race, we get to compete against the biggest and fastest cross country teams (D1, D2 and D3) on the East Coast, and even in the USA. This year seems to be as exciting as past years, when Wingate did a great job. We were especially proud last year when Wingate men's cross country placed first as a team!"
 
"This year, our team is very strong. We are getting all the work done…and now it is time to see what we are able to do. I am also curious about how the team will work this year. We had a lot of seniors who graduated last spring…and it is thrilling to see how the freshmen and newcomers will fit in. Cross Country is a team sport…and what truly makes us perform is the way we work together as one close and united 'gang,' ready to take on any challenge and go after it in every race."
 
"The team is very excited for this weekend…one can feel it. Everyone is talking about it…they are very happy not only for having the opportunity to race, but also for experiencing one more time, or for the very first time, a trip all together. Because, at the end of the day, we are just friends with the privilege of enjoying our passion all together."
 
Wingate junior student-athlete David Holman
 
"There's a lot of excitement surrounding the Lehigh race within the team…not only because it's a great opportunity to race against some strong competition, but also it gives the team a great benchmark for the season ahead. The team has been putting in consistent and focused training over the past weeks to get well prepared for this weekend to showcase our recent hard work."
 
"Each week has built on from the last…and we all have started to see the progress made translate into the more challenging workouts. We all seem to be growing in confidence which is great to see. The team is in a really good position now…and we are very excited to show our great fitness and to line up against some very strong D1 schools."  
 
Wingate University
 
Wingate University is a lab of difference-making that serves more than 3,400 students in North Carolina and offers 60 degree pathways, including 37 undergraduate majors, 10 pre-professional tracks and five dual-degree programs. Graduate students choose from seven master's and five doctoral programs. The University is home to the Cannon College of Arts and Sciences, the Levine College of Health Sciences, the Byrum School of Business, the Thayer School of Education and the School of Sport Sciences.
 
Founded in 1896, Wingate University is a leader in healthcare education where nearly one in five undergraduate students is preparing to be a pharmacist, physician assistant, physical therapist, occupational therapist or nurse. Student-athletes on Wingate's 30 teams compete in NCAA Division II and have brought home the SAC Echols Athletic Excellence Award the past 17 times it has been awarded. The University's motto is "Faith, Knowledge, Service." View current news and videos at www.wingate.edu.
 
OneDog, #OneDog, and One Day One Dog are registered trademarks of Wingate University.